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I’m not sure if I should feel bad for Dan Campbell or not. I guess I do. This poor guy is trying so hard, or at least he’s showing it on the outside. And his team gets so close but figures out a way to lose (or tie, on one occasion).
Should the Ford family, which owns the Detroit Lions, lose patience with him? Well, it’s not as if losing is a new thing for this franchise; since the Fords took over they have one playoff victory. That was against the Dallas Cowboys in Jimmy Johnson’s first postseason appearance.
It’s been 58 years now.
But Lions fans have long since learned not to have expectations. All they’d like is to get on the board with a “W” so they don’t have to suffer the ignominy of a second winless season. Who could forget the glorious 0-16 squad of 2008?
Actually this would be the third goose egg; in 1942 they were 0-11.
Vikings at Lions Parlay Betting
Time: Sunday, December 5 – 1 PM ET
Totals Odds: Over 46 Points (-110) / Under 46 Points (-110)
The Play: UNDER 46 POINTS (-110)
When you go down the game-by-game results of the Lions, you’ll see that they have played well enough to win, in all probability, on several occasions, as they have lost by two points to the Ravens, Vikings and Bears, three points to the Browns, and had that tie with Pittsburgh. So they don’t necessarily resemble the 1976 Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Dalvin Cook will miss Sunday’s game with a separated shoulder, we’ve been told, and although that doesn’t mean Minnesota can’t run the ball, they won’t be able to do it as well and Detroit won’t either, as D’Andre Swift also has a shoulder injury. Campbell took over the play-calling and he wants to go run-heavy, so they’ll try anyway. The Lions are very little threat with Jared Goff throwing it; they have played eight of their last nine games under the total.
Eagles at Jets Parlay Betting
Time: Sunday, December 5 – 1 PM ET
ATS Odds: Philadelphia Eagles -6.5 (-110) vs. New York Jets +6.5 (-110)
The Play: EAGLES -6.5 (-110)
Is there a strategy where they can possibly tape Jalen Hurts’ right arm to his side, which would force him to hand the ball off with his left arm on every play? Seriously, we have grown to like the Eagles, but by now you must realize why first-year coach Nick Sirianni has elected to go so run-heavy with his offensive game plan – depending too much on Hurts to throw the ball can be fatal. And let’s be honest; it was that way at Alabama against capable defenses too.
Sure, the Jets can win if Hurts throws a bunch of interceptions again. But between these two sides, there is only one that does something exceptionally well. Philly has now averaged 216 rushing yards over its last five games, and they have now vaulted into the #1 spot in the NFL in that category.
What would be fun here – and maybe change the dynamic – is if Joe Flacco got into the game for the Jets against the team that traded him there at the end of October.
Giants at Dolphins Parlay Betting
Time: Sunday, December 5 – 1 PM ET
ATS Odds: Miami Dolphins -5 (-105) vs. New York Giants +5 (-115)
The Play: DOLPHINS -5 (-105)
So how did Big Blue’s “new-look” offense do under the direction of Freddie Kitchens? Well, Kenny Golladay caught only three passes; Saquon Barkley had 53 yards on 17 touches, and Even Engram had three receptions against the league’s worst defense against the tight end position (Eagles). The best thing that happened for their offense was three Jalen Hurts interceptions (and Jalen Reagor’s butter-fingers), truth be told.
Let’s see how Kitchens and Daniel Jones deal with the Miami blitz packages, which have helped propel this team to four straight wins and sudden longshot contention in the AFC playoff race. Tua Tagovailoa, even missing some receivers, completed 27 of 31 against Carolina, which is pretty impressive, whichever way you want to look at it.
Jaguars at Rams Parlay Betting
Time: Sunday, December 5 – 4:05 PM ET
Totals Odds: Over 48 Points (-110) / Under 48 Points (-110)
The Play: UNDER 48 POINTS (-110)
Of course, there is no comparison in terms of the firepower these teams possess. But it goes a little deeper than that. Teams are starting to figure out Matthew Stafford a little in this Rams’ offense, as evidenced by pick-sixes in EACH of the last three games.
Okay, so this may be tricky for some of you, because these are the two teams that play at the fastest pace in the NFL (in terms of time between snaps). But with the Jags, it’s often a superhighway to nowhere, as their 1.42 points per drive ranks 31st in the league. So you’re always worried about them being able to put points on the board. But their stop unit actually isn’t horrible in a lot of metrics, particularly in their ability to defend the run (4 ypc). And they have the sixth best pressure rate in the league against opposing quarterbacks. That’s not good news for Stafford, who, according to Pro Football Focus, is 27th among the league’s QB’s when he’s under pressure.
Broncos at Chiefs Parlay Betting
Time: Sunday, December 5 – 8:20 PM ET
Totals Odds: Over 47 Points (-110) / Under 47 Points (-110)
The Play: UNDER 47 POINTS (-110)
The results were kind of mixed for Patrick Mahomes when he played against Vic Fangio’s Denver defense last season. In December, he threw for 318 yards, but the Chiefs recorded their second-lowest point total of 2020 with him at the helm as they snuck by 22-16. In the first meeting, he threw for a season-low 200 yards, but the Chiefs took advantage of four turnovers and scored 40 points. And KC had only two pass plays that went 20 or more yards.
Basically the theme is that Fangio is going to do whatever is possible to take those big plays away, and he has practically written the blueprint as the Chiefs have had to put together longer drives in order to score. They have now won four games in a row, but they have topped 20 points just once in their last five. No surprise that they’ve played five of the last six under the total.
Denver is the third slowest-paced team in the league, and they are developing a nice little ground attack as hard-running Javonte Williams has teamed up with veteran Melvin Gordon. So it’s no wonder they have played nine “unders” in eleven games.
